Double-A Pensacola left-hander Will Stewart hit Biloxi’s David Fry with an up-and-in fastball Friday night, forcing in the game-tying run in an eventual Blue Wahoos loss. It was a critical moment in the game, of course, but perhaps nobody in the world outside of my nerdy self immediately recognized the historical significance.
That was Stewart’s 24th hit by pitch of 2021, setting an all-time single-season record for affiliated Marlins minor league pitchers.
Watch it for yourself:
(On a related note, I highly recommend subscribing to MiLB.TV if you don’t already)
Stewart broke a tie with right-handers Pat Leahy and Jheyson Manzueta, who allowed 23 HBP apiece in 1993 and 2011, respectively.